Chinese Takeout
When it comes to Chinese food in the United States, no restaurant is more iconic than Panda Express, who has over 1650 stores here.
How does it sound if you could make all the things you get at Panda Express for a fraction of the price, and even healthier as well?
Look no further, as I am going to share a series of popular and super easy Chinese recipes with you all.
Getting the Best Panda Express Copycat Recipe
Panda Express is famous for its Chow Mein and I am sharing the copycat recipe with you today. Everyone loves Chow Mein, greasy Chinese noodles tossed with lots of vegetables, stir-fried over very high heat in a wok.
Furthermore, to make sure that I do justice to the real deal, I recently went to Panda Express twice. I made sure to talk to the cook and drill down the recipe, and I got it down to a T.
Ingredients to Make This Copycat Recipe
- Noodles
- Onion
- Cabbage
- Celery
- Soy sauce
- Oyster sauce
- Oil
Tips for the Best Chow Mein
- A perfect chow mein should be loaded with lots of wok hei (breath of wok)—the ingredients should be flash cooked over high heat in a wok, so the noodles and vegetables are slightly burned and charred
- I am sure you have seen the cook at Panda Express tossing and cooking the noodles behind the counter, all done in a matter of minutes. To get good wok hei, you need lots of oil and a wok (but skillet will do).
- The chow mein should never be soggy or wet, and no water should be added during the cooking process.
See It for Yourself!
So, below is the real Panda Express on the left and my version on the right. The chow mein tastes exactly like Panda Express, the only difference is the noodles used.
Panda Express noodles are specially made for them only and not available at the stores. For the closest replacement, use yakisoba.
This is a super easy recipe to make at home and you can get all ingredients from regular stores. Make a big batch of Panda Express Chow Mein—it’s so good, so easy, healthier, cheaper, and you can have as much as you want!
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 362 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
5 Secrets to 20 Min Dinners
Get tricks for quick & easy meals!
Panda Express Chow Mein Copycat
Panda Express Chow Mein - the BEST copycat recipe ever that tastes EXACTLY like Panda Express. So good, so easy, healthier, cheaper, and takes 15 mins!!
Ingredients
- 1 lb. 400 g packaged yakisoba
- 3-4 tablespoons oil
- 1/2 yellow onion sliced
- 8 oz. 226 g cabbage, sliced
- 2 oz. 56 g celery, cut into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons oyster sauce
Directions
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1Discard the seasoning packages of the yakisoba noodles. Loosen up the yakisoba and set aside.
-
2
Heat up a wok or skillet over high heat, add the oil when it's heated. Add the onion, cabbage, and celery into the wok, stir fry and toss continuously until the vegetables become soft and some of them are slightly charred.
-
3
Add in the noodles and stir a few times before adding the soy sauce and oyster sauce. Stir continuously to combine all the ingredients in the wok. Dish out and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
You can also use Chinese chow mein or egg noodles. Follow the cooking instructions on the packaging before stir-frying.
Julie A Barton
This looks delicious!! What kind of oil do you use?
Rasa Malaysia
Vegetable oil.
Jeff
If I wanted to add chicken to this for the kids, would the following instructions work for Step 2 (I am attempting to combine aspects of this recipe and your Chicken Chow Mein recipe without losing the Panda Express flavor)?
Heat up a wok or skillet over high heat. When it’s heated, add the oil to the wok/skillet. Add the chicken. Stir-fry until the chicken is half cooked or the surface turns opaque, then add in onion, cabbage, and celery (and carrots, if desired). Stir fry and toss continuously until the vegetables become soft and some of them are slightly charred. Add in the noodles and stir a few times before adding the soy sauce and oyster sauce. Stir continuously to combine all the ingredients in the wok. Dish out and serve immediately.
Jeff
I forgot to mention the “velveting” of the chicken in Step 2: Pat dry the chicken with paper towels. Add 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1 teaspoon corn starch to the chicken. Stir to coat well. Set aside for 10 minutes.
Patricia
Thanks Jeff the the method and recipe! I hope it worked for you, I am going to try it too! :-)
Rasa Malaysia
Try this recipe: https://rasamalaysia.com/chow-mein/
Denise
Hi Bee. I am not familiar with cooking yakisoba noodles. You say to break up the noodles and set aside. Aren’t the noodles dry? Don’t I need to boil them first? I really want to try this, but since I am unfamiliar with wok cooking, I don’t know if you put the dried noodles in the wok or cook them first.
Thank you. Love your recipes, especially your pad thai.
Rasa Malaysia
Yakisoba noodles are always soft and fresh, not dried. You can break them up and loosen them before using.
Shigeru Sasaki
You can microwave the noodle in the bag for a minute to loosen them. Then you can start frying them out of the bag into the pan. This way the noodles are not broken into pieces.
Lynn
Thank you for posting! This is a great recipe for easy, tasty Chow Mein- and very open for any add-ins to suit preference for personal tastes -everyone I have served to has enjoyed it a lot! Your emphasis on high heated oil is very key to this delicious dish, something that has caused chow mean fails in previous efforts! Most copycats I’ve tried have also been too saucy, salty or sweet- yours is perfect!
Rasa Malaysia
Thank you!😊
Queene Greene
Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes and boundless cooking/recipe knowledge. Please know its very much appreciated!